


Traffic Jam

by hizashi



Category: iKON (Korea Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, M/M, rating is for language
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-29
Updated: 2019-12-29
Packaged: 2021-02-26 03:38:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,109
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22013899
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hizashi/pseuds/hizashi
Summary: Jinhwan and Bobby are stuck in a traffic jam, and Bobby reflects on their relationship.
Relationships: Kim Jinhwan/Kim Jiwon | Bobby
Comments: 2
Kudos: 31





	Traffic Jam

**Author's Note:**

> Loosely inspired by the song "Traffic Jam" by Spicysol.

Jinhwan huffs out a sigh through his nose just after a particularly obnoxious series of car horn blasts, and Bobby glances over at him warily. They've been stuck in traffic for nearly forty-five minutes now, which, after an already late start, puts them over an hour behind schedule. At the thirty-minute mark Bobby had gently mentioned that they'd probably miss the boat tour they'd booked, and then as if to further spite him and make Jinhwan’s mood even fouler, it had started raining. Jinhwan has been quiet since then—probably too irritated to speak—which doesn't bode well for anyone. Jinhwan can be difficult when he's in a bad mood, and sometimes these bad moods last for ages. And with things going the way they are, Bobby thinks Jinhwan’s mood has about as much of a chance of clearing up as the weather. So much for a fun day at the beach... 

Bobby returns his attention to the road and squints at the dark sky ahead of them. He hasn't been back to LA since the summer after his second year at university for his brother’s wedding. He hadn't really wanted to come back this time—least of all to do anything even remotely connected to tourist traps—but Jinhwan had been dropping hints about wanting to visit since they were first years, and now that they're together, Bobby supposes it had only been a matter of time before he'd been dragged back. To be fair, though, he doesn't _really_ hate LA, and he certainly misses his mother, but he hadn't had the easiest time growing up in the area, and it had taken every ounce of resourcefulness he had possessed to get himself out. Any attachment he has to the place is tied to his own home and not much else beyond that. And if he's being honest, all the sentimental value he places on his home is more on the people and the experiences—and the people don't need to be there to matter, and the experiences he can always revisit in his memories.

But Jinhwan had wanted almost desperately to go, and Bobby loves Jinhwan enough to not have put up too much of a fight.

Bobby glances at Jinhwan again. He forgets, sometimes, that Jinhwan had spent his formative years on a tiny island somewhere off the east coast. He'd moved to the mainland late in elementary school, where he'd lost his accent and his quirks thanks to bullying and his own need to blend in with the crowd. (Though he does slip into the accent when he's particularly upset or impassioned, and Bobby gets giddy with glee whenever he hears it.) But even his city on the mainland had been tiny (Bobby isn't sure he'd even call it a city), so it would seem unsurprising that small town boy Jinhwan is fascinated by megacities like LA. Bobby, however, has never been able to wrap his head around this. Jinhwan had found their college town overwhelming, and though their university has a respectable number of students numbering in the tens of thousands, the city is a true college town: The majority of its inhabitants are students, who disappear during the summer to turn the place into something resembling a ghost town. Jinhwan, who had found the central area of the university at noon to be uncomfortably busy, had always loved the city in the summer. No one around to jostle him or look at him or take notice of his presence in general. Bobby smiles to himself. This whole trip is really somewhat of a mystery, now that he thinks about it.

Jinhwan sniffles and coughs, shifting noisily in his seat. Bobby lets his eyes sweep across the unmoving lanes of traffic for any signs of movement before they settle back on Jinhwan. He's folded up in his chair now, knees to his chest, his whole body angled toward the door. He isn't really dressed for the beach, Bobby notices. Skinny jeans, boots, and a tank top covered by a leather jacket. His hat lies abandoned on the dashboard. Bobby frowns thoughtfully at the peeling bumper stickers on the car in front of them. He hadn't been all that awake this morning, but he has a vague memory of Jinhwan’s saying he would change when they got to the hotel. Yes, now Bobby remembers: He'd wanted to go straight to the beach, but Jinhwan had wanted to go to the hotel to freshen up, he’d said. Not that Bobby could see any reason for freshening up before going to the beach. But he had been too tired to bicker about it, and it's not like he couldn’t see the merits of dropping off all their things first. Besides, they could probably have a nice walk down to the beach from their hotel, and Bobby can’t complain about not having to pay for parking.

Bobby chuckles a little at the memory, which prompts Jinhwan to turn to him with raised eyebrows. “Something funny?” Bobby quickly shakes his head, muttering that nothing is funny. Jinhwan snorts and leans back against the window. He pulls his phone out of his jacket pocket and starts tapping away. Bobby inches the car further forward, wondering vaguely how old the honor student from Santa Monica Middle School must be now if the sticker is that faded. He's just settled on nineteen as his best bet and is about to ask Jinhwan what he thinks when Jinhwan laughs loudly before quickly stifling it with his free hand.

“Who’re you talking to?”  
“Junhwe.”

Bobby nods and makes a thoughtful noise while Jinhwan focuses his attention back on his phone, a small, private smile on his face. Junhwe has always been more Jinhwan’s friend, and Hanbin’s friend, but Bobby likes Junhwe well enough. And it's really all thanks to Junhwe that Bobby and Jinhwan had ended up together anyway. Hanbin had met Junhwe at a floor event at their residence, and after he'd been introduced to Bobby and they'd all become friends, Junhwe had introduced Bobby and Hanbin to his roommate, Jinhwan. It had then been Junhwe’s suggestion for the four of them to find an apartment together. Hanbin, at first, hadn't wanted to give up the conveniences of campus living, but Junhwe’s endless needling had eventually convinced him. The next three years living with Jinhwan, Hanbin, and Junhwe had been one of the best parts of Bobby’s time at university, and it's what had made him and Jinhwan grow so close. They'd gotten together at that apartment, too. Bobby smiles a little to himself at the memory.

He had come home late from work during spring break to find Jinhwan still awake in their living room. Bobby and Jinhwan had been the only ones still in the apartment: Hanbin and Junhwe had both gone home for spring break while Jinhwan had stayed to work on his thesis, and Bobby had stayed because he hadn't wanted to go home. Even now Jinhwan and Bobby both go to sleep late, but Bobby hadn't expected Jinhwan to still be working that late, at least not in the living room. Bobby had asked Jinhwan conversationally what he'd been working on, when to his great bewilderment Jinhwan had burst into tears. It had taken some time to calm Jinhwan down, but when Jinhwan could speak again, Bobby found out that Jinhwan hadn't eaten all day or slept in two. Bobby had immediately forced Jinhwan into the shower, made spaghetti and meat sauce, and cleaned up the living room while Jinhwan washed up, and then he had eaten with Jinhwan while they watched his favorite show on Netflix. Jinhwan had relaxed considerably, sinking comfortably against Bobby on the couch, the weight of him warm and pleasant. When his eyelids had started to droop, Bobby had ushered him to his bedroom to finally sleep.

“Oh, wait, one more thing,” Bobby had said before dashing to his own room to grab his tattered old Winnie the Pooh toy. It had been his best friend as a little kid, always there for him, and it's one of the few things from home he'd brought with him. (One of the few things from home he still has even now, truth be told.) He'd plopped down on the bed beside Jinhwan and held out the toy. “He always helped me sleep, so I thought…” Bobby’s voice had trailed off, suddenly embarrassed, though by his childishness or his vulnerability, he couldn't be sure. But Jinhwan had taken the toy from him and held it almost reverently in his hands, and then he had looked up Bobby with a completely unguarded, grateful expression on his face. “Thank you,” he had said in a soft voice, and Bobby could hear everything he hadn't said in those words, and his heart had jumped to his throat. He had smiled, with some difficulty, and put his arm around Jinhwan's shoulders to give him a reassuring squeeze, fighting the urge to kiss his temple instead. “You know I'm always here for you.”

The next morning Jinhwan had knocked on Bobby’s door and come shuffling in. He had come to return the Pooh doll, but he had seemed nervous, somehow. “Did you mean what you said last night?” he had asked, fingering Pooh’s cracked black eye. “About always being there for me?” Bobby had answered at once that of course he'd meant it; he wouldn't have just said something like that for no reason. Jinhwan had exhaled slowly and started speaking in a shaking voice. “Well, you know I—I care about you a lot, and I—” But Bobby had caught Jinhwan’s chin in his hand, tilted Jinhwan’s face up, and kissed him, and the rest had been history.

“What are you all smiley about?”  
Bobby blinks and looks over at Jinhwan, who is grinning at him. “Just thinking about how we got together.”  
Jinhwan hides his head in his hands in mock embarrassment. “You mean when I humiliated myself in front of the guy I'd been crushing on for two years? Yeah, good memories.”  
Bobby snorts. “And I gave you my childhood toy and admitted I still slept with it. I think both of us have things to be embarrassed about.”  
“Nah, your thing was cute, mine was just pathetic.”

Bobby clucks his tongue and starts to disagree when Jinhwan waves him off. He stretches, his joints cracking as he sighs a little, and then he twists around in his seat to get himself a drink from their cooler. He snaps open the soda can, takes two long sips, and then holds it out for Bobby with a smile. “Thanks,” Bobby says, and he downs half the can. They're quiet for a while, and then Bobby asks what's up with Junhwe. Jinhwan laughs.

“His usual dumbassery. He got shitfaced last night, and he fell asleep while washing his face at the sink with the water running and didn't wake up till it spilled all over him,” Jinhwan says, laughing again as he takes another sip of soda. “He claims Donghyuk tried to smother him with a pillow over it.”  
Bobby snorts at that. “Sounds like something both of them would do.”  
Jinhwan makes a noise of assent and gazes out at the long lines of cars. “This traffic fucking sucks.”  
“Yeah,” Bobby agrees. He hesitates. “We should probably call the boat tour place to see if they can get us on another tour.”  
“You're right,” Jinhwan says with a sigh.

They're both quiet again, and Bobby wants to apologize for the traffic, for his own silence, for the way this trip is turning out, but Jinhwan taps his forearm. Bobby glances at him, and Jinhwan is smiling, his eyes crinkling, and he holds out his hand. Bobby takes it. Jinhwan’s fingers are cold from the soda, but not uncomfortably so, and when Jinhwan laces their fingers together, Bobby gives Jinhwan’s hand an affectionate squeeze. 

“Don't apologize,” Jinhwan says softly. “I know you're only out here for me, and it's not your fault the weather and traffic suck.”  
“No,” Bobby says slowly, “but still—”  
“But nothing,” Jinhwan interrupts. “Spending time with you is enough for me, even if we are stuck in traffic.”  
“Yeah, but I still want you to be happy.”  
Jinhwan’s expression softens. “I _am_ happy.” He pauses and looks away, his cheeks pink. “I just love you, you know?”  
Bobby smirks. “Yeah, I know.”

They've been creeping along at a pretty steady pace for the last few minutes, and now, finally, traffic seems to be thinning out and moving at a normal speed again.

“I love you too.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!
> 
> I didn't think I would (or could) write iKON again, but here we are... I originally got this idea this past summer when I first heard the song "Traffic Jam" by Spicysol, and after all those months, here this is. It didn't quite turn out how I had initially imagined it, but writing seldom does.
> 
> Anyway, I hope someone out there enjoys!
> 
> (Full disclosure: I don't know anything about LA, lol.)


End file.
